Walt Disney World Recipe Index: Thought You’d Never Ask, Part Two

Thought You’d Never Ask, Part Two by Dorothy Chapman (1921 – 2004) was published in 1983 and is one of the first books to reproduce recipes from Walt Disney World restaurants. The first collection was published in 1979 and four, in total, were published. Dorothy Chapman served as the food editor and restaurant critic for the Orlando Sentinel from 1971 to her retirement in 1986. She also made appearances on WFTV-Channel 9’s noontime news show with weekly segments based on her Thought You’d Never Ask column in the paper.

The spiral-bound book is broken up into seven sections and an index. Each section is devoted to a specific food type/course. There are other Orlando eateries featured: Al E. Gator’s; Casa Gallardo; Orange Quarter; Park Plaza; White Marlin; Bakerstreet; Freddie’s Steak House; Le Cordon Bleu; Limey Jims and many more!

Mini Book Review

As far as a book review, this is an interesting collectible but will only be enjoyed by people that ate at the restaurants during the early 1980s. You could also use it to get an idea for the cuisine served, but it is rather hit or miss and never comes close to offering full menu choices.

What is interesting is how Ms. Chapman organized the recipes from Walt Disney World. Since it was published in 1983, Epcot Center was still new and it is apparent in the book. The restaurants are in one of three categories: Epcot Center; Lake Buena Vista; or Walt Disney World. Historically, it has always been interesting to see how Disney marketed the Vacation Kingdom of the World. In this case, Epcot Center was obviously an important development since the restaurants are labeled as such. Also, it could be that since the Epcot Center restaurants were so new, they needed to be singled out. In many instances, Ms. Chapman simply listed the title of the restaurant without mentioning whether it was at Ft. Wilderness, The Contemporary or the Magic Kingdom. Is it another case for the ubiquitous nature of marketing Walt Disney World, even to Orlandians? That the MAgic Kingdom did stand for Walt Disney World? What does this tell us?

Walt Disney World Recipe Index

As a public service, we are offering an index to Walt Disney World Recipes found throughout Disney-related cookbooks.Here are all of the recipes from Thought You’d Never Ask, Part Two by Dorothy Chapman.